Meghan Kowalski
  • Home
  • Resume
  • Presentations & Publications
  • Portfolio
  • Newsletters
  • Blog
  • Contact Me
  • Home
  • Resume
  • Presentations & Publications
  • Portfolio
  • Newsletters
  • Blog
  • Contact Me

The Weekly Wrap: May 18, 2025

5/18/2025

0 Comments

 
Picture
Heads up, I'm about to go on a tear about the firing of Carla Hayden, the Librarian of Congress. She was in the ninth year of a ten-year appointment. She was the first professional librarian to hold the position in decades. Her leadership transformed the institution to help it keep up with the rapid changes of the information landscape. Dr. Hayden is an exemplar of what it means to be a librarian. Also, as a woman of color, her leadership of a white-dominated field cannot be overstated. Her visibility and openness made what I do for a living far more visible to the communities we serve all over the country.

Her firing is a travesty. I was heartened to see others in my field rally around her through petitions, calls to congress, and many think pieces. There was no reason to fire her - despite what the White House claims. The White House assertions are willful misunderstandings of what the Library of Congress and libraries in general are for. I'm glad those in my field are forcefully calling out this disgraceful action and demanding her reinstatement.

Why is this important? Well, the library of CONGRESS serves CONGRESS. It's a part of the legislative branch, not the executive. The president has no say over LOC or any of its subunits - like the copyright office. More importantly, LOC is charged with being the warehouse for and preserver of knowledge. A new head - who answers only to one man with zero respect for actual truth - will do incalculable harm to the collections and actions of the institution.

The truth is the truth. It should be protected and not warped to suit one petty little man's grievances. LOC is charged with providing ACCURATE information to Congress. The Congressional Research Service goes deep on any topic or question asked. Any change to the reality that is shared could irreparably damage foreign relations and policy decisions. 

Furthermore, what any congressional office asks LOC is kept private. While librarians may not have the legal protections of a relationship like attorney-client privilege, we do take privacy seriously. Hell, I have worked with some students for years and I still don't know their names. It's not my business. I'm here to get you access to what you need without prejudice or judgement. That is the only way that people can feel comfortable asking us difficult questions.

So I was damn proud when the persons the President appointed as replacements were rebuffed by library staff at the door. While the law is on the library's side, I believe that our professional ethics also demanded such action. You do not send a fox to work in a hen house. The collections and work of LOC are too important.

Picture
  • It's rude that you would call me out this way. [The Ringer]
  • This is why I made a subscription tracker in a spreadsheet. [NYT - may be paywalled]
  • How to write useful wine tasting notes. [Wine Folly]
  • Why prescription drugs are so expensive. [Your Local Epidemiologist]
Picture
  • Is Finland happiest by comparison only? [The Daily]
  • The power of short wave. [The Divided Dial]
  • How medical disinformation spreads. [StarTalk]
Picture
  • Verdana is best. [@silly_goose_science]
  • A Simple Favor is a wild movie. I don't know what genre it falls into! There are moments of comedy, lots of drama, and a bunch of mystery. This movie only works because the leads, Anna Kendrick and Blake Lively, commit to the bits. The plot is pure chaos with way to many loops. But, it was a fun nonetheless. [Amazon Prime]
  • The Husband opted to rewatch Eureka as his late night show. I forgot how zany that series was. I know it's pure science fiction, but the setting and campy plots are enjoyable. [Amazon Prime]
Picture
  • I brought out a recipe from our deep archives. Vegetable stir fry with noodles is a snap to throw together on a weeknight. I made things even easier by using a bag coleslaw mix instead of prepping my own veggies. Plus, I love working with bricks of ramen noodles. [Budget Bytes]
  • For my lunch meal prep, I mixed up chickpea chopped salad. This was close in flavor to the many other Greek-flavored chickpea salads I've made. Your supposed to serve this with pita chips but our store was out. The crunch would have been a nice addition. [Eating Well]
0 Comments

The Weekly Wrap: May 11, 2025

5/11/2025

0 Comments

 
Picture
It's finals week at my university. Each day is a complete unknown. It could be incredibly busy or I could watch tumbleweeds roll past the desk. There is no rhyme or reason as to what each day could look like. 

But, one morning, I did get to go really into the weeds with a student who was trying to citation chain articles. She was working on a lit review and needed a lot of metanalyses and the like. She came to the desk with one article and was trying to figure out where to go from there. I told her all she needed to do was point out which citations she was interested in. I could then work citation by citation to help her track down each piece. 

She thought she had to figure that all out by herself. Since she's interested in grad school, I told her to sit by the desk and watch me work. That way, she could learn all the ways librarians try to track down known items.

Spoiler alert - it's a lot of browser tabs.

Would it have been faster and less messy to do this on my own? Yes. But was the student grateful she had some new things to try on her own? Also, yes. 

That was a 45-minute reference transaction, but it's exactly what we're there for. 

Picture
  • The trend towards squeeze. [TASTE]
  • I was SSSSed once. It wasn't too bad. [WaPo - gift link]
  • This speaks truth about school spirit days. [The Atlantic - gift link]
  • This health misinformation is killing people. [Your Local Epidemiologist]
Picture
  • For the love of fan fiction. [Culture Study]
  • It's a privilege to pee. [Planet Money]
  • Emojis and the law. [99% Invisible]
  • AI is very, very thirsty. [Short Wave]
  • Why people love Warren Buffett. [The Daily]
  • No. There is not a plastic spoon in your brain. [Science Vs]
  • The philosophical essence of tariffs. [Planet Money]
Picture
  • I caught myself going deep on these fun music arrangement videos. [@jimlapbap]
  • We wanted to watch season two of The Hot Zone but decided to restart with season one. That season came out in May 2019. It's about an Ebola-like virus that hits a monkey facility in suburban DC. Let's just say the final episode calling for the government to prepare for an outbreak speaks even louder now. We've learned nothing. [Amazon Prime]
Picture
  • We've been trying to cycle more salads into our meal planning. This week, that meant tossing together strawberry bacon salad. Since I cooked the bacon the night before, this came together in about 10 minutes. I know bleu cheese is a strong flavor, but it provides essential oomph to this recipe. [Sally's Baking]
  • When I made the sauce for the sweet and spicy gochujang chicken bowls I thought, "This is WAY too watery." Ye of little faith. When it hits the hot pan, it cooks down and thickens quite nicely. The husband said the leftovers made a delicious burrito the next day. [Ambitious Kitchen]
  • The best thing I ate this week was my meal prep. I made cold tahini noodles with vegetables and I wish I whipped up a double batch. It was so tasty and refreshing. I opted to omit the peanut butter from the sauce, but I wish I had topped my servings with the called for handful of peanuts. I will be making this again - sooner rather than later. [WaPo]
0 Comments

The Weekly Wrap: May 4, 2025

5/4/2025

0 Comments

 
Picture
I've been waiting for two books to come in from my local public library. They're both romantasy and I can't wait to get my hands on them. Unfortunately, the library only has a few copies of these titles so I've been waiting for over two months.

In the meantime, I've decided to just read random books I already own that I can stop at any time. The only problem with this is that I'm not in the mood to read these titles. I'm not eager to open the covers and dive into these pages. I find myself either falling asleep immediately or just staring at the pages - bored. 

I want to enjoy my reading. I want to be excited to see what happens next or to learn something new. Instead, I'm merely tolerating things. 

I know this is just a little bit of a rut, but I don't like it.

How do you handle waiting for a book you want to read?

Picture
  • I wonder how many of these students will become librarians or social workers. [Oxford American]
  • The human connection in hitchhiking. [The Atlantic - gift link]
  • "And once facts are discarded, anything can come in their place." [The Atlantic - gift link]
Picture
  • Spies in the doll shop. [Very Special Episodes]
  • Nothing happens here. [Atlas Obscura]
  • These DOGE cuts will make us sicker. [Short Wave]
  • How to have better conversations. [Try This]
  • Coyotes are okay at a lot of things. [Atlas Obscura]
Picture
  • Tiny science art is riveting. [@artistsuniversum]
  • The husband had started watching Clarkson's Farm as his solo late night show. Then he made the mistake of putting it on during a weekend afternoon. I was hooked! As much as Jeremy Clarkson can be an absolutely oaf, this is a charming and heartwarming show. I'm learning a TON about farming and local government. This is absolutely a cheerleading show to support farmers. [Amazon Prime]
Picture
  • For my lunch meal prep, I went back to an old favorite - curried chickpeas and spinach. This is a one pan dish with a lot of punch. I like that you can adjust the spice level to your taste. I always add a bit of extra ginger. I like to eat this one with some store bought naan. It also reheats well in the microwave. It's also good with a dollop of sour cream or yogurt on top. [Budget Bytes]
  • Spicy shrimp egg roll in a bowl is something I've made before. It's not complicated and the spicy mayo punches above it's weight. This time around, I opted to add a handful of fried wonton strips on top. First, that really brings in the egg roll flavor. Second, the texture contrast was an excellent addition. [Paleo Running Momma]
  • The husband picked sheet pan BBQ meatballs and making this dinner turned into a team effort. He made the meatballs while the kiddo and I were out. I finished the rest of the meal in the evening. This one is easier than it looks - particularly if you have a cookie scoop to make the meatballs. I like to take a bite of meatball and a bit of pineapple and eat them together. [Budget Bytes]
0 Comments

The Weekly Wrap: April 27, 2025

4/27/2025

0 Comments

 
Picture
My coworker joined her husband on a work trip last week. They went to Dubai and Doha. She brought us all back a bar of that viral Dubai chocolate. (I will NOT be sharing that with the kiddo.) As excited as I am for the chocolate, I really want to see pictures of her trip. I've never been to the Middle East and I'm not certain I will make it there. 

I have friends who travel to Belize fairly regularly. Other friends of mine vacationed in southeast Asia for their honeymoon. My bestie and her husband went to Japan. Other folks I know travel abroad for work. A couple I know do mileage runs across eastern Europe. 

Can we bring back vacation slide shows? Can we have parties where people just talk about their travels? I want to be an armchair passenger! 

You provide the pictures, and I'll make sure we all have airline-sized Biscoff cookies to nibble on while you talk about your adventures.

Picture
  • We are on the fast track to authoritarianism. [The Atlantic - gift link]
  • A look at some lovely travel journals. [Colossal]
Picture
  • To text, or not to text. [Life Kit]
  • We don't yet know how the human body will respond on Mars. [Short Wave]
  • The legacy of Pope Francis. [The Daily]
  • The wisdom of the soccer crowd. [99% Invisible]
  • Walking in the footsteps of early women adventurers. [Atlas Obscura]
Picture
  • Olympic parent vs. regular parents at school field day. [The Independent]
  • I opted to turn on Gladiator II with pretty low expectations. That was probably a good mindset to have. This movie felt like battle scenes in search of a cohesive plot. I think the director really wanted to film the aquatic scenes and designed a vague plot around that. I did like how it seemed that Denzel Washington was having a lot of fun. [Paramount+]
Picture
  • For Easter dinner, the husband made sous vide duck a l'orange. It's so good and not that much work. (At least compared to the prissy oven roasted duck he made a decade ago.) Plus, you turn the marinade into a pan sauce and it makes the dish. We served this with green beans and crescent rolls. I might dip my crescent roll in the pan sauce... [Anova]
  • I wanted a simple lunch meal prep this week. Black bean fajita skillet was a breeze. I opened a can of beans, snipped open some frozen veggies, and tossed everything in a pan. Then it was just a matter of tossing on some spices. I reheated these at work and scooped the mixture into tortillas with some shredded cheese. [Eating Well]
0 Comments

The Weekly Wrap: April 20, 2025

4/20/2025

0 Comments

 
Picture
After a week in Florida and yesterday's travel day, I am le tired. Happily, we did lots of laundry while with my folks so that made unpacking and reentry at home a little bit easier.

I'm going to miss the kiddo's joy as she caught lizards. But at least my dad grabbed an excellent picture of her elation. That's now my desktop background. 

Gonna keep this short today, so let's just get to this week's links.

Picture
  • Hands and pans. [Best Food Blog]
  • The juxtaposition of reading this while my parents provided childcare over the kiddo's spring break was not lost on me. [The Atlantic - gift link]
  • 15 minutes better. [The Analog Family]
  • Shopping in a French Costco. [David Lebovitz Newsletter]
  • The fascinating kid culture of the cootie shot. [The Atlantic - gift link]
Picture
  • Parking breaks pretty much everything. [College Matters]
  • We could all probably use some ways to destress right now. [Life Kit]
  • Write more letters. [Life Kit]
Picture
  • An excellent breakdown of why the SAVE Act is pure stupidity. [thedadchats]
  • Need some absolutely mindless drivel to watch? Might I suggest Meg 2: The Trench? Unlike the first film, which was a creature feature, this was more of a sci-fi escape movie that happens to have really big sharks. The plot is completely absurd and full of holes. Watch this one just because it's fun and nothing else. [Max]
  • After our glass bottom boat tour, my dad thought it would be fun to put on the 1966 flick The Glass Bottom Boat. The boat is the teeniest plot point. This is an insane rom com "spy" caper of a flick. It stars Doris Day and a bunch of people I don't recognize. The movie fully gives into the space race tech vibe you see in The Jetsons. [YouTube]
Picture
  • One night this week, we took the kiddo to, as she calls it, "treehouse pizza." In Gainesville, FL there is a pizza place called Satchel's. The pizza is really good, but the vibe of the restaurant is even better. It's full of mosaics and fun things glued to walls, wind chimes, and other zany things. We eat in the "treehouse" section outside that even has an airplane the kiddos climb in and out of. I had a slice of The Major (you only need one cause they're huge) and it's got veggies and sausage. The crust is fantastic. [Satchel's Pizza]
  • After we went to the Gator's softball game, we came home for a "raid the fridge" dinner. I grabbed leftover cascatelli pasta and dino nuggets. I added some spicy tomato sauce to the pasta, toaster ovened the nuggets to toss in, and added the last of the parmesan cheese on top. It was a poor man's chicken parm, but it was really tasty.
0 Comments

The Weekly Wrap: April 13, 2025

4/13/2025

0 Comments

 
Picture
Yesterday, the kiddo and I hopped on a plane to Florida for her spring break. While she's being spoiled rotten by the grandparents, I'll be "working from home." At least DC's Emancipation Day on Wednesday is a holiday and I will get to join the glass bottom boat tour. I haven't done that since I was a kid.

​I don't know who's more excited? Me or her.  Probably me, because I know what we're in for and it's going to be a blast.

What kid activity do you want to try again?

Picture
  • What they don't get. [The Atlantic]
  • Keeping your digital life clean. [karpathy]
  • Add some glimmer to your day. [enJOY]
  • I feel a bit better about my inbox right now. [All About Cookies]
  • What people are using AI for. [HBR - may be paywalled]
  • Oh, look! The perfect list for a delicious event. [Wine Folly]
Picture
  • The cascading impact of Trump's tariffs. [The Daily]
  • Was it the medicine or the journey? [Short Wave]
  • Longevity products are a crock. [How to Age Up]
  • It's not a pest if we love it. [Atlas Obscura]
  • Writing a cookbook is not like anything else. [Culture Study]
Picture
  • Alexander Ovechkin surpassed Wayne Gretzky's goal record this past Sunday. I'm so glad I was able to watch it at home with my husband. He's the one who turned me into a hockey fan. The kiddo even stuck around for a bit to watch the on ice hullaballo after Ovi hit 695. [Monumental]
Picture
  • I only made one new recipe this week, cashew chicken lettuce wraps. It was so good and will immediately go into our rotation. This was the perfect, lighter meal to start the week with. I love the sauce. It's tangy with a bit of sweet and heat. The husband said this reheated well the next day. We served this with a side of edamame in the pod. [Eating Well]
  • A friend and I went out for dinner in the middle of the week. We ended up at Teaism. I had  their spicy glass noodles with tofu. It was filling and delicious. But, I really loved the ginger limeade I added as a beverage. It was just the right amount of tangy and zippy to accompany the spicy noodles. [Teaism]
0 Comments

The Weekly Wrap: April 6, 2025

4/6/2025

0 Comments

 
Picture
Flying is always a bit of chaos. First, you have your own logistics of planning, packing, and getting places. On top of that, you're at the whims of weather and the airlines. I thought, when I booked my ticket for the conference I attended this week, that my direct flight to Minneapolis would be the least of my problems. No connection? No problem!

I was wrong. So very wrong.

Things started to go badly before I even left home. Several hours before my flight was due to take off, I got a notice about a delay. Fine. It happens. I dilly-dallyed a bit and then was happy to see an update that the delay would be shorter than planned. So, I wrapped things up and headed to the airport. Security was a breeze, I grabbed a tasty lunch, and I chilled at the gate. The inbound flight arrived late but still earlier than the original delay.

Then things took a turn. The gate agent announced that there was a maintenance hold. I am a jinx for these when I travel solo. About 75% of the flights I've had in the past five years end up on some sort of maintenance hold. The longest one took two hours to resolve which ended in my unexpectedly spending the night in Dallas because I missed my connection. I figured this couldn't that bad. DCA has a full maintenance shop. I know this because my University has an aviation maintenance training program in one of the hangers.

Then the waiting started. The waiting with almost no updates from the gate agents. What little they did share gave no updates about timelines or the level of concern. But then, what luck!, everything was resolved. About two hours later than planned, we boarded the flight. We even taxied... to what what I like to call a timeout area. Then we got the news, there was another maintenance issue. Back to the gate we went where we even had to deplane. 

At this point, our entire passenger group was bouncing back and forth between the gate and the customer service desk trying to get any sort of information or find alternative travel. I've had great experiences with American's customer service in the past. Not this time. My fellow passengers were all calmly asking questions. We were stonewalled, ignored, and rudely dismissed. One man next to me was yelled at for asking a simple follow-up question. It was insane. American kept saying they couldn't do anything unless the flight was cancelled. And the wouldn't even help people who had connections to make. I have never seen or received such snippy service. 

To make matters worse, we couldn't really leave the gate area for long because we didn't know if we would be boarding in 5 minutes or 5 hours. 

Nearly two hours after we deplaned, we got word that the maintenance issue was fixed.... but half of our crew timed out. We were all once again cooling our heels waiting with zero updates. Every time they opened the jetway door, we all sat up straighter hoping for some action. Finally, seven hours after we were scheduled to leave, we were allowed to board again.

After taxing to the end of the runway, we suddenly turned off. Now, I fly out DCA a lot. I know what is normal and what is not. The diversion we took that ended with us parking by the maintenance hanger was not normal. But there was no announcement. We sat around for 15 minutes. Then, we inched back on to the taxiway. Finally, an announcement from the pilot, "Flight attendants... [too long of a pause where the entire aircraft inhaled]... prepare for takeoff. [collective exhale by everyone on board]."

7.5 hours after we were supposed to leave, we were finally underway.

Oh, and then we landed in near white out conditions.

So, yes, when the first leg of my trip home offered a cheap upgrade to first class, I took it.

I will be writing a strongly worded letter to American and I won't be letting things go until I receive some compensation (at the very least some free Wi-Fi codes). I don't mind delays when they need to fix maintenance issues or replace a timed-out crew. I put safety above all else. What I mind is the surly and unreasonably rude customer service. I saw no behavior that warranted treating passengers with such disdain. 

What was the worst flying experience you've had?

Picture
  • Learning to recycle from ancient builders. [WaPo - gift link]
  • It's probably not the worker but the job that's the problem. [Culture Study]
  • Language is an incredibly thing. [@Merriam-Webster]
Picture
  • All about OTC pain killers. [Life Kit]
  • Shotgun weddings and the Vietnam War draft [Very Special Episodes]
  • The bad paperwork of longevity. [Good on Paper]
  • Looking at the possible upsides of tariffs. [Planet Money]
Picture
  • Look at this book! [@shaperorarebooks]
  • A lovely look at the fashion of Eid. [@islamicsocietyofbaltimore]
  • Whiskey Tango Foxtrot kept being suggested to us, so we finally got around to clicking "play." It's loosely (very loosely) based on a true story about a newbie war reporter in Afghanistan. I really enjoyed this one. It had one of those casts where people you know keep popping up. I like that it found the humor in all of the the drama and chaos. [Amazon Prime]
  • I love limited run series. Zero Day shows why they are way better than series that go on for seasons and seasons. The short duration means there's tighter writing and storytelling. I love that they went unreliable narrator. You never quite know what is real or not. This one had an astounding cast. I will watch Connie Britt and Joan Cusack in anything. [Netflix]
Picture
  • Since I was at a conference for most of the week, I did a lot of eating out. One dish I did make before I left was chicken shawarma with potatoes. This was a sheet pan meal that was pretty quick to make and had delicious results. The addition of cinnamon in the spice mix was so good. The only comment my husband had was, "More garlic." Done. [Eating Well]
  • I also made a quick dinner of fancy tomato sandwiches. These would have been better with a farm fresh heirloom tomato, but our store didn't have those in stock yet. Don't skimp on the fried onions, they bring an essential sweetness that really rounds out the dish. We served this with a side of roasted carrots. [Real Simple]
0 Comments

The Weekly Wrap: March 9, 2025

3/9/2025

0 Comments

 
Picture
Our kiddo asks a lot of "Why?" questions. Somewhere I read that, when kids ask this, what they are really saying is, "Tell me more!" So, I do.

A why always leads to me sharing a new bit of information which leads to more whys which leads to more information. On our walks to and from school we've covered everything from the weather to space, physics to dinosaurs, history to social justice issues, and plate tectonics. And this is all from a kindergartener!

But, sometimes, my generalist knowledge is strained. At some point, I simply have no more information to share. Or, in some instances, I simply don't know. (Looking at you physics.) In those instances, I've gotten comfortable saying, "I don't know, but we can look it up." Kiddo seems satisfied with that and we've often picked up books from the library to learn more together.

This is the part of parenting I was looking forward to most. I love seeing her curiosity come to life. You never what's going to catch a child's interest. 

Picture
  • These things could hurt your home. [Lifehacker]
  • The charming humanity of Reddit. [The Atlantic - gift link]
  • When the presidency is content... [WaPo - gift link]
  • Another example where digital is not forever. [AP]
Picture
  • This made me want to rewatch Easy A. [Hot and Bothered]
  • How the US healthcare insurance system came to be. [Throughline]
  • The cost to use the Panama Canal. [The Indicator]
  • The botanists who put saving seeds first. [Gastropod]
Picture
  • Who knew globe making was so intricate and relaxing to watch. [@globemakers]
  • I really wanted to like Devotion but it tried way too hard. It wanted to be so much more than it was. The bones were there but it was too earnest, too acted, too produced, and way too overwritten. In the end, everything came across as forced. It's a compelling real life story and it didn't need all that. [Peacock]
  • A Quiet Place Part II might be the rare sequel that's as good as the original. While the surprise of what the alien looks like is no longer there, the continued need for silence is the tension. And, even when you know the jump scares are coming, they are still a shock to the system. Once again, the filmmakers attention to detail on what makes noise what astoundingly good. [Netflix]
  • We started watching the Doctor Who that are Disney+. The stories are mostly just okay but it was great to see David Tennant in the transition episodes. I am also enjoying Ncuti Gatwa's embodiment of the character. But I have HUGE issues with the episodes. The are WAY too glossy in the production. Things have been "Disneyified" and everything is over produced. This series doesn't need all of the stuff, it takes away from the storytelling. The few episodes we've watched that are story forward are excellent - but the others are just too much. [Disney+]
Picture
  • I might have been trying to force spring weather when I made shrimp and spinach caprese salad. I based it on an episode that calls for white beans instead of shrimp. This was quick to toss together and was a nice spin on a traditional caprese. [Eating Well]
  • There was a bottle of teriyaki sauce chilling in our fridge that needed to be used up. While I didn't use it all, tossing together a chicken and pineapple stir fry sheet pan was a yummy way to make a dent in the bottle. I mistrusted my recipe transcription and set our oven at 400 instead of 450. Go with the 450, our sheet tray was a little bit soupy and there was no caramelization action. We served this over rice with an extra dash of sriracha. [My Evernote]
0 Comments

The Weekly Wrap: March 2, 2025

3/2/2025

0 Comments

 
Picture
This was a treading water kind of week.

Since we were beset with illness, my usual standards for daily life management did not apply. We delayed laundry and recycling runs. Our robot vacuum did not run. I let the piles accumulate. Straightening up was not a thing that happened.

Instead, we focused on the essentials. Did our required work things get done? Was everyone fed?  Did we occasionally bathe? Did we get decent amounts of sleep? Those are the things that mattered. Everything else could wait.

And, you know what? It was all fine. We healed while our home was a little messier.

​I have a tendency to think I'm not good enough when my life management standards slip. I need to stop doing that. The world will continue turning, our kiddo will be healthy and happy, and getting to things later is a perfectly acceptable course of action.

Picture
  • The allure of forbidden foods. [TASTE]
  • Dining at the CIA. [WaPo - gift link]
  • The inconvenience of being a Null. [WSJ - may be paywalled]
  • Life is about savoring. [The Atlantic - gift link]
Picture
  • What the US can learn from Canada. [The Indicator]
  • The rise of corporate run skiing. [Booming]
  • The encroaching imperial presidency. [Throughline]
  • The voice of a robot. [Radio Atlantic]
Picture
  • I knew literally nothing about the Tom Cruise anchored sci-fi film Oblivion before we turned it on. I'm pretty sure he took the role so he could ask for some fun tech props. There are a lot of high-tech looking props in this movie. The movie is pretty to look at but the plot was too fussy.  Plus, you get the sense that something is off from the start. Not the best film but a fine Friday night popcorn watch. [Netflix - but I believe it just left]
  • Just in time for the Oscars, we watched Conclave. This had more art house vibes than I expected. But those vibes come with gorgeous cinematography and a stacked cast. We had no clue what it was about to start but we had fun guessing the various scandals. As some raised Catholic who went to THE Catholic University, the attention to detail amused me. I literally cackled in recognition of some of the character traits. [Peacock]
  • The Husband decided to rewatch Firefly as his late night show. I've caught snippets and was reminded that this show was cancelled far too soon. It's a galloping space western with witty writing and fun stories. I also adore the world building. [Hulu]
Picture
  • I wanted curry but I didn't feel like making it from scratch. Enter a curry simmer sauce. I grabbed a jar that looked good, tossed in some shrimp and spinach, then served the whole thing over rice. It was easy and delicious. The husband did say he missed having naan and I agreed with that assessment. [Maya Kaimal]
  • The flavors of stuffed peppers are one of my favorite things, but the actual stuffing and cooking process is so time consuming. This stuffed pepper casserole gave me all of the taste in about half the time. Plus, the ratio of "filling" to pepper was a bit better. This reheated really well the next day. [Eating Well]
  • For my lunch meal prep, I tossed together mashed chickpea salad with dill and capers. It was good but I really should have used the entire jar of capers. They got lost and I missed their briny bite. I scooped this up with some whole wheat pita and it was filling lunch. I am going to add this to my rotation. [Eating Well]
0 Comments

The Weekly Wrap: February 23, 2025

2/23/2025

0 Comments

 
Picture
My library has a chat tool embedded on our website to make it easier for people to get help. It's staffed by our team of real life, reference librarians. But, oftentimes, we are mistaken for bots.

I get that. It seems that AI is in everything. Usually these moments provide a bit of levity in my day. I'm thinking of that time someone signed off with, "Thank you helpful library bot."

On Friday, we got a series of chats from high school students in Halifax. Despite my conversational tone, tailored answers, and reassurances that I was indeed a human being, one student refused to believe I was a real person. Apparently, I type too fast? I was also accused of giving canned responses.

In order to prove my humanity, this student asked me share my LinkedIn page. Honestly, that was a brilliant thing to ask for. It's a public page and my chat avatar image happens to be the same image as my LinkedIn profile.

I'm going to steal that idea as an example when I teach about AI and evaluating sources.

Picture
  • The power of peat. [WaPo - gift link]
  • The meaning of blue to the Black community. [The Atlantic - gift link]
  • I will be using more paper maps after reading this. [The Analog Family]
  • Geography is fascinating. [Brilliant Maps]
  • I added so many things to my adulting to do list about reading this health checklist. [WaPo - gift link]
  • Some members of Congress want to revoke DC's ability to govern itself. This is what might happen. [The 51st - *note: I am a DC resident and am vehemently against this move]
Picture
  • The rise of the antivax movement. [Throughline]
  • The science and taste of alcohol-free booze. [Gastropod]
  • Watching the government funding pipeline. [Planet Money]
  • What it feels like to be fired by DOGE. [The Daily]
  • An interesting consideration on the start of compulsory elementary education. [Good on Paper]
Picture
  • I haven't watched Speed from start to finish in years. It was a delightful thing to rewatch this week. I had completely forgotten how this one both started and finished. I pretty much only remembered the stuff on the bus. Also, this is full of old tech alerts but it holds up as a thriller. [Hulu]
Picture
  • I did not feel like cooking this week so we relied on quick and easy dishes. I made shrimp tacos with corn salsa. The recipe was more of an inspiration than anything else. I used canned, fire roasted corn and skipped the avocado in lieu of a swipe from a mashed avocado single packet. I also made a crema out of sour cream and the juice of a lime. Peeling the shrimp was the hardest part of this one. [My Evernote]
  • For Christmas, we make beef wellington. We always end up buying a larger than necessary beef tenderloin. Once we cut what we need for the wellington, we slice individual steaks off the leftovers and toss them in the freezer. This week, we defrosted two steaks, sous vided them, seared them off with salt and pepper, sliced them, and served them over a bag of sesame Asian salad. Easy peasy. [Dole]
0 Comments
<<Previous

    RSS Feed

    Categories

    All
    Blog Update
    Just Good Things
    Kid Reads
    My Work
    Now On My TBR
    Now Reading
    Some Words
    The Look Up
    The Now
    The Weekly Wrap
    Tuesday Tips
    What I've Been Reading

Proudly powered by Weebly